I won’t cast aspersions on any party, or guide anyone toward or away from any party. I won’t natter on with the usual talking points, such as “If you don’t vote you can’t complain.”
But what I will say is that, perhaps more than anything else, democracy depends fundamentally on clarity. All stakeholders in the direction of the country, from regular citizens like you and me to the political decision-makers, deserve to know what the will of the people is, and how strong or weak a mandate they have for this policy direction or that one.
Your neighbours need to know whether they stand alone, or in common with many.
True, governments face confidence votes in the House, and survive or fall on them.
But as we learned in 2011, the number of seats in the House is not directly translatable to the popular vote (and vice versa). Having the confidence of the House is not identical to having the confidence of the people. And whether a party is in power or in opposition, they deserve to know, as do you, what support they have, or what popular discontent they face.
Voter unanimity with a 10 per cent turnout does not provide that clarity.
And neither does a 60-per-cent turnout with a 35/32/30 per cent popular vote split.
Do the other 40 per cent think/feel the same way? We don’t know.
So, whether you think your preferred candidate or party has a shot at victory, or you think you need to “hold your nose” to vote, or are dissatisfied with the entire system and wish to convey that in some form on a ballot, give democracy the solid footing it needs and deserves.
Whatever your preference is, make the will of the people clear to all concerned — vote.
Mark Hammer, Ottawa
